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TennisSection previews the 2023 Stuttgart Open final match featuring Iga Swiatek vs Aryna Sabalenka on Sunday, April 23, 2023.

Iga Swiatek vs Aryna Sabalenka Preview

Top seed Iga Swiatek will lock horns with second seed Aryna Sabalenka in a rematch of the Stuttgart Open final from last year. Who will prevail this time?

Iga Swiatek barely even broke sweat as she eased into the final after her semifinal opponent Ons Jabeur was forced to retire just three games into the match. Jabeur appeared to have picked up the leg injury in the very first game of the match and called for a medical timeout once Swiatek held for 1-0. Her left calf was taped up, but after two more games, the popcorn semifinal ended prematurely with Jabeur tearing in disbelief. Swiatek will now have the chance to defend her Stuttgart Open title against the same player she defeated 12 months ago – Aryna Sabalenka.

Iga Swiatek vs Aryna Sabalenka Prediction and Pick

Iga Swiatek leads Aryna Sabalenka 4-2 in their head-to-head. The Pole has won two of their meetings on clay, incidentally at the Stuttgart Open in last year’s final and in Rome, both in straight sets. Sabalenka, however, stunned the World No. 1 at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth in November, winning their high-stakes semifinal in three sets. Sabalenka has clearly been a pebble in the Swiatek shoe in their past two meetings. Prior to their clash in Fort Worth, the Belarusian power hitter led Swiatek by a break in the third set of their 2022 US Open semifinal. I’ve been impressed watching Sabalenka this week. She’s been extremely clinical with her thunderous power off the ground, putting the likes of Krejcikova and Paula Badosa to the sword. She has also served immaculately all week, dropping serve a combined four times in three matches. Swiatek isn’t going to relinquish her crown easily given her mastery of the surface, but if there was one player with the temerity and weight of shot to take the match out of her racket this week, it is the second seed.